How we handle your data

What we collect

• Your email address. Required to verify your vote. One verified vote per email.
• Your vote. Which option you picked and (optionally) which politician you voted on.
• Optional survey answers.If you fill in the post-vote micro-survey (state, age range), that's stored too. Both fields are optional and self-reported.
• Interaction events. Pages viewed, sections scrolled, buttons clicked, time spent. We do not log keystrokes. We do not record screen replays.
• Coarse device + location info.Browser, operating system, device type, and country + US state. Derived from your IP address by our hosting provider — we don't store the IP itself any longer than we have to for spam prevention. We never collect precise location.
• Referral info. If you arrived from a link, we record where from (the standard utm_* parameters and the referrer header).
• Phone number (optional). The vote form has an optional phone field. We store it alongside your vote. We do not send SMS to it. If we ever do, it will be a separate opt-in flow with a clear disclosure first.

What we don't collect

• Precise location (GPS, street address, ZIP).
• Keystrokes, mouse movements, or session replays.
• Biometric data, facial recognition, voice prints.
• Special-category data (race, religion, political affiliation beyond your vote on the seating question, health, sexual orientation).

Why we collect interaction data

We are a campaign trying to persuade people of an idea. To do that well, we need to know what's working. Which arguments make people stop and read? Which paths lead to a verified vote, and which lead to a bounce? Without that signal we're flying blind.

We collect interaction data on every visitor (the basic pages-and-clicks layer), and after you verify your vote, we connect that history to your email — but only if you accepted the consent banner. That's how a “58% are voting side-by-side” number turns into a useful answer about which page or article actually persuaded those voters.

Cookies + the consent banner

On your first visit you'll see a small bar at the bottom of the screen explaining this and offering accept or decline. We remember your choice in a first-party cookie so the bar doesn't pop up again. You can change your mind any time with the button below.

If you decline: we capture only the essentials needed to make the site work and to count votes. Your interaction history stays disconnected from your email even after you vote.

Global Privacy Control + Do Not Track

If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control (GPC) signal or a Do Not Track (DNT) header, we treat that as a decline automatically. You won't see the consent banner at all and we won't link your interaction history to your email — even after you verify a vote.

How long we keep your data

• Verified votes: kept indefinitely — the whole point of the campaign is the cumulative count.
• Pending (unverified) votes: deleted after 30 days if never confirmed via the email link.
• Interaction events: kept for 24 months, then aggregated and the raw rows deleted.
• Optional survey answers: kept alongside your vote, deleted if you ask us to delete your data.

Asking us to delete your data

Email vote@purpleup.vote from the address you used to vote and ask us to delete it. We'll confirm and process the deletion within 30 days. Your vote is removed from the public count. Your interaction history is purged.

You can also ask us for a copy of everything we have linked to your email — same email address, same response time.

Email from us

The only email PurpleUp.vote sends you is the one-time verification message after you submit a vote. We do not run a newsletter and we do not share your email with any other organization. If we ever change that — for example, by launching an opt-in update list — it will be opt-in only and clearly disclosed before you sign up.

The verification email includes our physical mailing address, as required by US email law (CAN-SPAM).

Children

PurpleUp.vote is intended for US adults. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 13. If you believe a child under 13 submitted information, email us and we'll delete it.

Nonpartisan framing

The United Seating Initiative is a nonpartisan civic campaign. We do not endorse any party or candidate. Your personal political identity is your own and we do not infer or store it beyond your vote on this single question.

Contact

Questions, deletion requests, or anything else — email vote@purpleup.vote.

Mailing address pending — contact vote@purpleup.vote.